joining us for this wis special edition of saturday morning, i'm mary king. and i'm len kiese. it's down to the wire for the democratic presidential candidates in the palmetto state. about 10 hours from now, we'll start getting a glimpse into who might come out on top-- hillary clinton or bernie sanders. the polls have been open now for about two hours. friday it was the big final push for the democrats to drum up we'll have more on those events just ahead. here's a look at how the democratic race is stacking up right now...according to the wall street journal. a poll of likely south carolina democratic voters finds about 58- percent favor hillary clinton. 32-percent favor senator bernie sanders. to get the democratic nomination, a candidate needs more than 2 thousand delegates. today -- bernie sanders and hillary clinton will vye for their share of south carolina's 53 delegates. right now cnn reports clinton and sanders are in a virtual tie for pledged delegates after the democratic caucuses in nevada. that does not include super

already pledged their support. while that count is close- political experts say south carolina has always been hillary clinton's firewall. among african americans - clinton is polling at close to 70 percent - which gives her a solid base for a victory here in the palmetto state. we have team coverage of the primary this morning. our caroline patrickis is at brookdale elementary school in orangeburg county. and our michal higdon is at dent middle school in michal -- how are things shaping up there? "steady" was the word we kept hearing last week about the amount of people who were casting their vote in the republican primary. and we saw record numbers. . now turnout today for the democratic primary is not supposed to set new records -- but officials do expect a decent turnout. if you're headed to the polls, make sure to check your polling location on

certain precincts might have changed. also, on the side of your screen you can see a list of things you'll need to bring with you. the democratic candidates have been out and about in south carolina, vying for your vote, but officials say the primary today doesn't hold quite the same weight it did last week. oldendick: "there's been different winners in south carolina -- they haven't always gone on to win the nomination. it's not as important from that standpoint to the party as it is for the republicans. primary election year, you're making some calculus to 'can this candidate actually win against their republican opponent in november.' so all of those different factors are going to be into play." polls are open until 7 o'clock

ballot in your possession, you can take it to your county elections office up until 7pm tonight. live from richland county, michal higdon, wis news 10. with those critical hours left before today's primary, the presidential candidates were making their rounds...with a big focus on the capital city. last night -- former secretary of state hillary clinton appeared at different events along side her husband bill clinton, and was even joined by columbia mayor steve benjamin for a rally outside the columbia museum of art. during her rally -- clinton kept her focus on the republicans, rather than democratic opponent bernie sanders, arguing that the gop candidates are offering failed economic policies. she also laid out some of her plans for making college affordable. "imagine that we have access to college where you have tuition that is debt free. you don't have to borrow a dime in order to go to college. then imagine we tackle the problem of student debt.

we help you shift into a program where you pay it back as a percentage of your income, which is what bill and i did when we got out of law school." "i want to send a strong signal that south carolina is ready for change, ready for progress, ready to make a difference. / let's go make america all it should be again." clinton also stressed her long ties to the state, and how she could look to lead following the legacy of president obama, if elected. you'll hear more on that ahead in our next half hour. clinton's challenger -- vermont senator, bernie sanders knows he has a big challenge on his plate to win over the majority of south carolina voters. township auditorium, sanders once again made his pledge to raise the nation's minimum wage, as well as find ways to make public colleges and universities

the campaign season between clinton and sanders has been health care. "when you have hundreds of thousands of people in this state who could have access to health care, but today do not because of this rejection of the expansion of medicaid. let's be honest some of those people will die. some of those people will end up a lot sicker then they otherwise would have been. tens of thousands of jobs that could have been created here in south carolina were not created....worry about the health needs of the people of the state." sanders says he believes his policies are promises he can keep -- if his supporters speak up by voting in today's primary. south carolina will be a battleground for clinton and sanders when it comes to

recent cnn/orc south carolina polls show clinton is favored 65- percent among african- americans compared to bernie sanders at 28- percent. orangeburg county is expected to have high there. our carolina patrickis is live at brookdale elementary school with more. good morning mary & len - polls have officially been open for over 2 hours now. . now orangeburg county has historically been a big one for the democratic party because of the number of african- american residents and elected officials in this county. jaime harrison, chairman of the south carolina democratic party says orangeburg county is known for their efforts on getting people out to the polls for election day. with that being said, officials say they don't predict the democratic voter turnout this weekend to hit the same levels back in 2008 when president barack obama was running his campaign. in that race, 512-thousand people voted in the 2008

in fact, more people voted in the democratic primary in 2008 than in the republican primary, according to harrison. as far as what we will see happen here at the polls according to harrison. as far as what we will see happen here at the polls today - harrison says it could be due in part to the slow start we saw in democractic race. "i think this contest is one in which it has been very competitive but it has been much smaller and much more confined and that is partly because the field for the race for us started later than what has happened in the past." harrison says turnout at the polls today will be nothing like what we saw in last week's republican primary. however, of course, the

hopeful for a decent showing. what will be interesting is once we get out of the parties, will be gauging the interest and energy once we have those nomimees from both republican and democrats. coming up later this morning - i'll have more on the significance of the african american vote here in south carolina live in orangeburg, i'm caroline news 10. south carolina voters will see a 3rd candidate on the ballot in today's primary. chicago businessman willie wilson says he's running for president as a champion of ordinary americans. wilson -- a self-made millionaire spoke to wis earlier this week saying he has plenty of experience running a business and dealing with international issues. as for the experience of washington veterans like bernie sanders and hillary clinton, williams says that kind of experience has "caused" the problems ameria has today.

they do not have the experience. i balance a budget for a they balanced budgets off of dollars. and they haven't done a very good job of i think the country today is in the problems that it's in today because of the experience, so- called, of my thing is one that's from the ordinary people in the street." among democrats, wilson says he has struggled with party leaders to get his name on the ballot. besides south carolina, he says he will be appearing on the ballot in california, louisiana, illinois, texas and missouri and he's in a court fight to get onto the ballot in mississippi. be sure to keep it right here for our decision 2016 coverage of the democratic primary. we will be live throughout the evening at various campaign headquarters for our special coverage that starts at 7pm. you can get the latest numbers after the polls close right here on wis and online at wistv dot com. beyond south carolina --

already looking ahead to super tuesday. 12 states will cast ballots during this ultimate contest on march 1st. more than 800 delegates are at stake for the democrats and nearly 600 for the republicans. after the dust settles on tuesday night, the delegate count could give a clear picture of the nominee in both parties. it's a busy morning out in lexington as the race against hunger is underway. certain roads are closed in town near saxe gotha presbyterian church on sunset boulevard until 10:30 this morning. with primary voting lexington police say additional officers are in this area to help voters going to and from polling locations. to be sure to double check your lcoation. no word on this year's turnout numbers yet, but last year more than 840 people participated. the race raises money for four charities including lexington interfaith community services, oliver gospel mission, world vision and area churches together serving. it is a cool start to your

a few clouds around, but you should have no weather worries today. meteorologist von gaskin has your first forecast. enjoy the sunshine all weekend with lows in the 20s/30s and highs in the 50s saturday and 60s on sunday. the next chance of arrives wednesday. we've got much more decision 2016 coverage ahead as south carolina votes in the democratic

after the break -- we'll be chatting with charles bierbauer with usc who'll be looking at south carolina's race for hillary clinton and bernie sanders and how today's outcome break 1 today will mark the fourth

they served our country. our country should serve them better. bernie sanders

to help clean up the mess at the v.a. and strengthen veterans' healthcare. bernie sanders has always stood with our veterans, and that's why he'll never rush to put our men and women in harm's way. judgment. integrity. bernie. sanders: i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. delegates. charles bierbauer- usc's dean of information and communications is here this morning for us to break down how south carolina could change the landscape

enjoy the sunshine all weekend with lows in the 20s/30s and highs in the 50s

the next chance of arrives wednesday. break 2 stories making local headlines

wednesday.

murder of a man on valentine's day is out of jail on bond. records show greg leon was released following a federal judge's decision to approve bond for a probation violation connected with the of arturo santos in lexington county. according to warrants, leon turned himself in after calling 9-1-1, telling the dispatcher that he shot his wife's lover. leon must comply with a number of conditions for his release ...including wearing an electronic monitoring bracelet. the judge also told him not to have any contact with his wife. investigators say the man killed in an accident at a midlands machine shop was crushed. the richland county coroner has identified the victim as ryan danser of willington, connecticut. officials say danser died when the tank truck he

and caught him between the truck k d and the tank. this happened at the utility group of sc on pineview drive. the coroner's office and osha are investigating the death. this weekend, the columbia fire community will say goodbye to one of its own. friday, the columbia fire department announced the death of senior firefighter andrew smith. smith served with ladder company 14 for a little over two years. a viewing will be on sunday for smith with a funeral to follow on monday -- both will be held in pennsylvania. the berkeley county deputy who was shot multiple times yesterday while on patrol continues to recover this morning. corporal kimber gist was shot in a gunfight while investigating a suspicious car near a grocery store in goose creek. we're told corporal gist is in stable condition, and was in high spirits following her surgery. corporal gist had been on road patrol in berkeley county for more than a year. authorities say the suspect --36 year old travis smith -- turned the gun on himself and committed suicide during a standoff afterwards in his north charleston home. up next -- we'll have a look at some events

this weekend. stay with us. break 3 says their names. trayvon martin shot to death. dontre hamilton unarmed. sandra bland... did nothing wrong. and makes their mothers' fight for justice her own. she speaks for a city poisoned by indifference. we need action now. and stands with the president against those who would undo his achievements. just like she's always...stood with us. hillary clinton.

be open until 7pm tonight. when you head out to vote... remember to bring one of these forms of i-d with you to vote.. a south carolina driver's license... an i-d card issued from the s-c dmv... a sc voter registration card with a photo... a federal military id.. or a u-s passport. we'll check in with our michal higdon and caroline patrickis at the p pls in just a few minutes in our next half hour. you can help out an organization trying to preserve columbia's history and try some tasty chili all at the same event this weekend. the palladium society's 18th annual chili cook-off is today from 5 to 8 pm at the music farm in columbia. 25 chili cookers will compete in various

tickets for the general public are 40 dollars at the door. admission includes all you can eat & drink chili, beer & wine. benedict college will host it's 27th annual harambee festival today celebrating black history month. there will be plenty of food, fun, dancing and events for the kids. also, some very important health screenings for prostate cancer, diabetes and vision. the event starts in just a few minutes at 9:30 in the benjamin e. mays human resources center arena on benedict's campus. the largest annual christian music tour stopped at colonial life arena last night. but before the big concert...one band helped serve up lunch at a midlands bojangles. "i'm dave the lead singer of sidewalk prophets. "i know you! i have sung your songs at my church! well here's a brand new cd for you...and we're going to take care of your order for you!" sidewalk prophets gave away cds and picked up customer tavs at the bojangles off sunset boulevard from noon until 1pm yesterday. hisradio 106.3, a local

broadcast live and shared this video with us. sidewalk prophets was one of 10 bands who performed at winter jam last night. birthday board break 4 this is a wis news 10 decision

change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability. bernie sanders. he was there when dr. king marched on washington. unafraid to challenge the status quo to end racial profiling, take on police misconduct, and take down a system that profits from mass imprisonment. there is no president who will fight harder to end institutional racism. education. opportunity. reform. bernie.

primary.

one goal. victory in the palmetto state. special decision 2016 coverage this morning. first in the south -- the democratic primary. good morning and thanks for joining us for this wis special edition of saturday morning, i'm mary king. and i'm len kiese. 9:30 is the time -- and if you haven't already gotten out there yet, voting in the 2016 democratic presidential primary is well under way. polls will be open until 7pm tonight. that's when we'll see those election results start rolling in. on the ballot... former secretary of state hillary clinton. vermont senator bernie sanders. and -- chicago businessman wilson. he's a 3rd candidate on the ballot here in south carolina, but he's stll fighting to be recognized as a candidate in other states. we'll have more on his campaign ahead. nationally -- the battleground is officially set for the two top-polling candidates, clinton political experts and early polling numbers are predicting clinton will be the victor in south carolina's democratic race.

likely south carolina democratic voters finds about 58-percent favor hillary clinton. 32-percent favor senator bernie sanders. we have team coverage of the primary this morning. as we know -- it's ultimately up to voter to decide who the winning candidate will be. our caroline patrickis is at brookdale elementary school in orangeburg county. and our michal higdon is at dent middle school in northeast richland county. michal -- how are things shaping up there? now if you are coming out to vote today there are a couple of things you're going to need to bring with you. the most important is a valid form of photo id -- that could be your drivers license, a state-issued photo i.d., military i.d., or u.s. passport. if you don't have proper id, you can still cast a provisional ballot by signing an affidavit explaining your situation. according to the wall street journal, as of yesterday here in south carolina hillary clinton was polling at 58 percent with

behind her at 32 percent. now as voters are making their opinion known today by voting for who they think should be the democratic nominee for president, the candidates know they still have a long road ahead. oldendick: "it becomes a very different campaign strategy once you get to multiple states rather than just the single focus that we've had here at the beginning of the campaign.we're not going to see a quick end to the nomination fight on either side.this is going to be a fairly long battle among both the democrats and republicics." and that long battle has already started as the

polls are open until 7 o'clock tonight and you we've got a link under the big red 10 if you're not sure where your polling location is. live in richland county, michal higdon, wis news 10. despite early polling numbers -- vermont senator bernie sananrs has been working hard in south carolina to sway more voters to his campaign. sanders made stops in both columbia and orangeburg -- two critical areas where democratic votes are typically high. at claflin university -- sanders talked education funding and criminal justice reform. he also made mention of his challenger hillary clinton and her stance on the death penalty in america. "you gotta look at the record, here's the e cord: i do not have a super pac. i do not get millions of dollars from wall street. i don't get huge sums of money from corporate america. i do not believe in the death penalty, too many innocent people have died. my opponent believe in the death penalty, i do not." sanders got a lot of support at claflin yesterday.

justin bamberg, rapper killer mike and erica garner the daughter of a ny man who died while in police custody. former secretary of state hillary clinton has a confident showing of support in both orangeburg and columbia as well. even with a double digit lead in state. she and her husband, made more than a dozen stops in the waning hours of campaign on friday. she appeared at south carolina state university looking to stir up support from younger voters. she praised president obama's record on economic recovery and healthcare, calling herself a "proud defender" of the president. when asked if her approach as commander- in-chief would be an extension of the obama years, this is what clinton had to say. i'm not running for president obama's third term. i'm not running for my husband's third term. but i do really respect the accomplishments each of them achieved during their presidencies. i think it would be unwise to say i've

anybody. you know there are things i respect about republican presidents. i want to pull together the best ideas, the best people. i'm not new to these issues. i've been working on issues of equity and poverty and opportunity my entire career. i worked hard to get healthcare, that's why i'm so supportive of what president obama accomplished. i think people have a broad view that i didn't just show up and say hey, come vote for me. proof of clinton's powerful support -- recent polling shows as much as 70 percent of black south carolinians -- especially older female voters, support hillary. and it's those votes that clinton is banking on in orangeburg county as well. our caroline patrickis is live at brookdale elementary in orangeburg with more on what the african-american vote means for both candidates. and new hampshire will be the presence of african- american voters taking stage for the first time in

in 2008 55% of people who voted in the democratic primary were african-american. jaime harrsion, the chairman of the south carolina democratic party is anticipating that we could see those same numbers in this election. both 2016 democratic candidates, hillary clinton and bernie sanders have been working hard to secure the african- american vote in our state. recent cnn/orc south carolina polls show clinton is favored 65- percent among african- americans compared to bernie sanders at 28- percent. harrison says the candidates highlighting what's important to the african-american community while campaigning this past week will play a big role in today's primary outcome. "so i anticipate that at least half of the electorate on saturday will be african-americans and that's a significant proportion of the vote and you probably don't find that in many states but that is going to be the situation on saturday."

leg up in south carolina compared to bernie sanders african-americans make up about 28-percent of compared to bernie sanders african-americans make up about 28-percent of south carolina's population according to census bureau statistics. compared to the previous nominating states: nevada's african- american population is less than 10-percent, followed by iowa and new hampshire with less than 5-percent. live in orangeburg, i'm caroline patrickis, wis news 10. chances are you may have seen a few campaign signs around the midlands mentioning 3rd democratic candidate here in south carolina -- willie wilson. wilson spoke with one- on-one with our charles molineaux earlier this week. he's recognized as a democratic candidate on ballots in a handful of states, but he's still fighting for others. wilson says he separates himself from washington veterans, bernie sanders and hillary clinton by

"ordinary" people. he also points to his faith as an appeal to voters in the south. "the other thing is that i speak the truth. my belief, in terms of the scripture wise, bible wise, thaha other people cannot say, or will not say, i simply believe marriage is between a man and a woman. but i also believe in humans rights as well. i believe that we should not have privatizing of our prison system. i believe there are more experience as related to public safety, things of that nature. wilson says he has plenty of experience running a business and dealing with international issues. be sure to keep it right here for our decision 2016 coverage of the democratic primary. we will be live throughout the evening at various campaign headquarters for our special coverage that starts at 7pm. you can get the latest numbers after the polls close right here on wis and online at wistv dot com. let't get a check on your forrast now. meteorologist von gaskin has more on this very cold morning

enjoy the sunshine all weekend with lows in the 20s/30s and highs in the 50s saturday and 60s on sunday. the next chance of arrives wednesday. the next chance of arrives wednesday. ahead this morning -- a lot of momentum in the gop side of the presidential

race with gop front-runner donald trump picked up a big endorsement donald trump picked up a big endorsement the former rival who is now endorsing him just a few days before super tuesday. earlier this week, 11th circuit solicitor donnie myers was charged with dui after crashing his car about a mile away from his lexington home. it is myers' third alcohol- related

over ten years. myers claims someone ran him off the road when he was on his way home following one drink at a local restaurant. the 70- year-old says he was given a ride home, but did not know who got him there. the responding trooper reported smelling a strong odor of alcohol in the vehicle

on the floor. myers failed a field sobriety test in his garage, his breath sample registered .09 blood- alcohol level. that was two hours after he called to report the accident. attending a prosecutor's conference in asheville. the results of two blood-alcohol should accept responsibility and be held accountable for his or her actions. for over 30 years, i have argued for accountability of others in some of the most heinous crimes our state has seen. this principle applies even more to me." then, in 2012, he was stopped for swerving and traveling in the middle of the road. a trooper spotted

a drink myers claimed was not his. he admitted to having drinks, but couldn't take part in a field sobriety test due to recent surgery. he pleaded guilty to having an open container. despite the 2005 dwi conviction that charge. david longstreet's six- year-old daughter was killed by a drunk

she says their names. trayvon martin shot to death. dontre hamilton unarmed. sandra bland... did nothing wrong. and makes their mothers' fight for justice her own. she speaks for a city poisoned by indifference. we need action now. d stands with the president against those who would undo his achievements. just like she's always...stood with us. hillary clinton.

a surprise endorsement for donald trump from his former rival friday afternoon. "i've been on that stage. i've gotten the know all the people on that stage. and there is no one who is better prepared to provide america with the strong leadership that it needs, both at home and around the world, than donald trump."

christie announcing he e endorsing donald trump for president. christie made the announcement while at a rally in texas with trump. christie says there is no one better prepared to lead the country in the republican 2016 race. a famous face who worked with donald trump was in town yesterday helping democrat, hillary clinton get some last minute votes. i had a chance to sit down with former daytime host of "the view", star jones. jones talked about everything from why she choose to support clinton, how she plans to get the word out to voters, and her thoughts on donald trump as a businessman running for president. "i've known donald trump for over 20 years now and we've had numerous encounters, but i really put him in his place when he started that birther way back in the day. seeing now, is a donald that i saw coming. and i don't think we should practicing the politics of devicisive, we should have the politics of inclusiveness and that's why it was a no brainer for me

a devicisive campaign says to me that you are not looking to be the president for the whole country, you are trying to tap into the negative space in our country and we don't need that." on another note, jones' project "my satan sisters", which is a fictional look at the world of daytime tv, is expected to hit the small screen soon. candidates from both parties are already looking ahead to super tuesday. 12 states will cast ballots during this ultimate contest on march 1st, which is this tuesday. more than 800 delegates are at stake for the democrats and nearly 600 for the after the dust settles on tuesday night, the delegate count could give a clear picture nominee in both parties. senator lindsey graham is calling out everybody ... including members of his own party. last night at a washington press club foundation dinner, graham jokingly went after all the candidates, using some colorful words...and

"my party is going bat crazy." "if you kill ted cruz on the floor of the senate, and the trial was in the senate, nobody could convict you." to get out. i endorsed jeb bush and he had to get out. i am the doctor kevorkian of the republican primary. tonight, i endorse donald trump and hope the graham magic still exists." graham's remarks is no laughing matter for pastor's alliance...suggesting that graham immediately resign for his joke suggesting the killing of senator cruz. the alliance has links to the in a statement, the group calls graham'm'comments "distasteful"

people of the state. enjoy the sunshine all weekend with lows in the 20s/30s and highs in the 50s saturday and 60s on sunday. the next chance of arrives wednesday. break 6

or

charles bierbauer- usc's dean of information and communications is here this morning for us to break down how south carolina could change the landscape

going back to the old neighborhood can be hard sometimes. walls have been built invisibly around the old neighborhood and that police brutality is used to keep folks hemmed in, and frankly, opportunity locked out. i spent my entire life in the civil rights movement. i came up in the naacp like my mom came up in the naacp, like my father came up with the congress of racial equality,

black lives matter. we need to combat institutional racism from top to bottom in a broken criminal justice system. i'm supporting bernie sanders for president and all of us who have joined this campaign are there for the same reason. he's always fought for a populus position of let's fight for all our families as if they are our own.

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make a guess and do your best gathering the data - find out, floogals. go! they're a band of cosmic friends tiny happy aliens blast off to another world secretly exploring when they land upon the earth nothing's ever boring they might have landed in your room be testing in the kitchen or exploring in the bathroom have you noticed something missin' it's another undercover super secret day experimenting all the way they think our planet's really great here come fleeker boomer flo adventures everywhere they go so check your room for cosmic friends tiny happy aliens they're floogals